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Across the Detroit River from what developed as the state of Michigan in the United States, the town was permanently established in 1796 as a British militaryfort. Fort Malden was occupied as a garrison. The town was developed by Loyalists who were granted land by the Crown in Ontario after the British lost the American Revolutionary War. They built many of their houses in the French style of a century before, giving the new town a historic character.

By 1869, the town of Amherstburg in the Township of Malden County Essex had a population of 2,500. Fort Malden was adapted for use as a Lunatic Asylum. Its main building was later used as a Port of Entry Money Order office and Post Office savings bank.[3] Amherstburg was incorporated as a town in 1878.

Amherstburg is home to several tourist attractions, including Fort Malden and the North American Black Historical Museum. An Ontario Historical Plaque was erected in Amherstburg by the province to commemorate Bellevue House's role in Ontario's heritage. Bellevue House (c. 1816-19) was the home of Catherine Reynold, a landscape painter and her brother Robert Reynolds.[4] Additional tourist activities include the Park House Museum and the charming King's Navy Yard Park, both of which are located in the heart of old Amherstburg.

The Gibson Gallery is located in a former Michigan Central Railroad Station (c. 1896), which has been fully restored to its original beauty. The gallery operates year-round, featuring exhibits by local artists, the permanent collection of the Art Gallery of Windsor, traveling exhibits from Ontario museums and galleries, and student art/photography exhibits. A restored Essex Terminal railway caboose is operated as a railway museum. [5] The restored Gordon House is another historic attraction of Amherstburg. Built as a residence in 1798 overlooking the Detroit River, it now houses a Marine exhibit.[6]

The Holiday Beach Conservation Area is one of the best fall birding sites in North America. The 546-acre (2.21 km2) nature reserve contains over 2,000 feet (610 m) of beaches, picnic areas, a 2-kilometre (6,600 ft) trail along the edge of Big Creek Marsh. Holiday Beach is considered a premiere spot to view the fall migration of raptors (birds of prey). A 'Festival of Hawks' event takes place in September.

Texas Road is a street popularly associated with paranormal sightings and ghostly experiences. This stretch of road passes through a gully and it has been rumored that a man once murdered another there. Since this time people have reported strange disturbances such as car ignitions failing and paranormal light shows.[7]

Amherstburg has a high proportion of retirement residences and second homes.

Members of the Amherstburg industrial community include Diageo, a local whiskey distillery that produces the legendary Crown Royal Canadian whiskey, Windsor Mold's Precision Plastics, one of Ontario's largest full-service suppliers of industrial plastics and thermoplastic, and Honeywell Performance Materials and Technology. Marathon Oil has a coke storage site near the river.

The production at the Honeywell plant of hydrofluoric acid (HF) was suspended in October 2013 in favour of a plant in Geismar, Louisiana.[8][9][10] The Honeywell plant is used in the production of fuels, refrigerants and other materials.[11] HF is a precursor to numerous pharmaceuticals as well as being used to produce Teflon, fluoropolymers and fluorocarbons. Because of its highly corrosive nature, HF is also used to dissolve glass, in glass etching and frosting, and is used in quartz purification, chemical milling, steel pickling and cleaning silicon wafers. It is produced by treating the mineral fluorite with sulfuric acid, which produces hydrogen fluoride and calcium sulfate. The plant, which is located at 395 Front Rd, North, had previously suspended its operations between 1992 and 1996, so there is hope that production will resume at some future time.[9] The plant's gypsum pond had been identified in 2008 as the source of high levels of arsenic pollution in the area, which were a provincial Ministry of the Environment concern since 2006.[12]

Honeywell now owns the adjacent Brunner Mond chemical plant and soda ash settling basins site, whose former owners, General Chemical Industrial Products, had declared bankruptcy in 2005.[9][13][14] This site was used since 1920 to manufacture calcium chloride and other chemicals, which were shipped from a deep water port on the Detroit river.[13] The site has been since April 2012 the subject of remediation work, supervised by CH2M Hill.[13]

The plant was once part of Allied Chemical, which retained it when it sold the soda ash and calcium chloride operations and Amherst Quarries to General Chemical. The plant is composed of three separate parcels connected through rights of way and easements. In 1999, Allied Signal merged with the much smaller Honeywell Inc. but chose to carry on the newly expanded corporation under the Honeywell name.

In the first week of every August, Amherstburg holds a heritage festival, consisting of activities at several locations around town. At Fort Malden, re-enactors depict eras ranging from the Roman Empire to the Second World War, establishing camps and performing battle demonstrations.

Since 2006, Amherstburg has held an annual Shores of Erie Wine Festival. Each September, the four-day Wine Festival features food, dancing, live entertainment, and wine tasting.

Amherstburg also celebrates Canada Day with a yearly fireworks display and day of family activities.

Art by the River (established in 1967), is an annual two-day arts and craft festival that takes place the weekend before Labour Day weekend on the grounds of the Fort Malden National Historic Site.